Almost at the 3 mo. mark! (11 y/o and 7 month old)

[cassiethulhu]

Hiiii! I'm back.

You guys are just way too helpful. And sometimes it's silly, to think about posting here, but even some reassurance goes a long way.

So we have Gracie and Poly. They've been co-habitating for over a month now and fairly well. Gracie even plays with Poly a bit - only for about 5 minutes or so at a time, sometimes longer - but she is older, and I'm certain it wears her out quickly. My worries are little, so I am lucky...but I still want to throw 'em up for you consideration (in color)

Gracie mrows/yowls/grumbles/hisses and swats at Poly still, but it's only when Poly has overstated her welcome in her face (or her butt, lol), or is playing when she doesn't want to be played with. We've never been able to clip Gracie's nails, she's very good at using scratching posts - but I would assume if she wanted to hurt Poly she would, and is smacking her without her claws out and nipping at her to put her in her place still? I get a little worried about the nasty noises Gracie makes (and unfortunately I don't have video), but she's always has been VERY vocal, very talkative, and my instinct is she is just adding some grumpiness to her putting Poly in her place.

Gracie also does this weird thing where their feeders go off at the same time and she waits to see Poly eat her food, then she eats hers. Any thoughts on that?

Photos showing Gracie is finE chilling with Poly in proximity, though hasn't let her snuggle up to her yet (one can dream). Poly is absolutely OBSESSED with her, even tries to nuzzle and lick her when Gracie is preoccupied with begging for dinner (they eat side by side no problems). And one night, they BOTH laid on the bed with us (though not together). I could have cried, haha.

Attached is a video of how they normally play:

 

[ArtNJ]

Unequal desire for play is always going to create a little friction, and its normal for the cat unhappy about being pestered to express that. Here, the 11 year old obviously has less desire to play than a 7 month old that is pestering the heck out of her and is expressing that.

This is an awesome end point for cats of these ages to end up at. The odds of a result this good probably aren't even 1 in 5.

I guess your worried that one day the older cat's periodic grouchyness will contribute to a real problem arising. Thats not impossible, but not terribly likely given that they are playing some. Not much to worry about.

 

[cassiethulhu]

Unequal desire for play is always going to create a little friction, and its normal for the cat unhappy about being pestered to express that. Here, the 11 year old obviously has less desire to play than a 7 month old that is pestering the heck out of her and is expressing that.

This is an awesome end point for cats of these ages to end up at. The odds of a result this good probably aren't even 1 in 5.

I guess your worried that one day the older cat's periodic grouchyness will contribute to a real problem arising. Thats not impossible, but not terribly likely given that they are playing some. Not much to worry about.

This is SUPER reassuring, thank you. It's a little disconcerting hearing Gracie's grouchy noises, but she really does seem to tolerate much. More patience than even I have sometimes. Haha.

 

[Tobermory]

The video and photos made me smile. Gracie is determined that Poly should understand that she is the top cat. But despite the warning noises, I don’t think she minds Poly. The body language reminds me of the way Lily (17) was with Mocha (7). Lily would growl or hiss, and Mocha would squeak and sit down and stare longingly at her. Sometimes she’d lunge at Mocha when she’d had enough, but occasionally she’d forget herself and give Mocha’s head a little lick. They never became buddies, but they co-existed peacefully.

Poly is still a baby so she’s going to annoy Gracie, but they actually look like they’re finding their way with each other. I don’t know about the thing with the feeders. Maybe Gracie wants to be sure Poly is occupied before she starts on her own food.

 

[cassiethulhu]

The video and photos made me smile. Gracie is determined that Poly should understand that she is the top cat. But despite the warning noises, I don’t think she minds Poly. The body language reminds me of the way Lily (17) was with Mocha (7). Lily would growl or hiss, and Mocha would squeak and sit down and stare longingly at her. Sometimes she’d lunge at Mocha when she’d had enough, but occasionally she’d forget herself and give Mocha’s head a little lick. They never became buddies, but they co-existed peacefully.

Poly is still a baby so she’s going to annoy Gracie, but they actually look like they’re finding their way with each other. I don’t know about the thing with the feeders. Maybe Gracie wants to be sure Poly is occupied before she starts on her own food.

Oh my gosh, Lily and Mocha sound so sweet. That's exactly how I would characterize Poly...she seems to really adore Gracie and just wants a good friend, make the most of their situation.

Monumentally, my partner just sent me these photos from today. Poly wiggled her way down into their favorite chair and actually was able to lay and SLEEP next to Gracie for a good hour!

Of course, when she woke up, she starting toying with Gracie's chest fur, which is her favorite, and Gracie was less than amused...but seemed to say "eh, whatever kid." My heart is beating so fast, I AM SO EXCITED!

 

[Tobermory]

Awww. So cute! They should be fine together. That doesn’t mean Gracie won’t frequently be annoyed, and she may continue to growl, hiss, and swat, but she’s teaching Poly her manners. They’re both gorgeous, cassiethulhu !